ASSAM

NITI Aayog to extend support for methanol production in Assam

Assam government today said NITI Aayog will extend all necessary support for augmenting methanol production of Assam Petrochemicals Limited (APL) by utilising the natural gas available in the state.

The Chief Minister also stated that disposing municipal solid waste as a major cause of concern for the government and sought support from NITI Aayog to utilize the same to convert into an alternate energy source.

Saraswat apprised Sonowal that there is potentiality of methanol production in Assam and its huge coal reserves can be extensively used for producing methanol.

He also highlighted different sources such as natural gas, CO2, Biomass, Municipal Solid Waste, kitchen waste and wood for deriving methanol, which are available in good quantity in the state.

INTERNATIONAL

· Rwanda gets first cricket stadium

Rwanda’s first cricket stadium was inaugurated on 29thoct 2017 byPresident Paul Kagame as a permanent home for developing the sport in the country.
The Rwandan Cricket Stadium Foundation was set up by Alby Shale, the son of a late British politician and cricket lover who visited Rwanda to do aid work.
Rwanda’s national cricket association estimates that only around 4,000 people currently play cricket.

· India to Host UN Wildlife Summit in 2020

India will host the next United Nations (UN) global wildlife conferencein 2020.
India will host the next CMS Conference of the Parties CMSCOP13.
It was officially announced at the closing CMSCOP12 plenary, in Manila, Philippines.
The six-day 12th Meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS COP12) is the only international treaty devoted exclusively to migratory animal species.
The theme of the Conference was ‘Their Future is Our Future – Sustainable Development for Wildlife and People’.

· England beat Spain 5-2 to Win First-ever U-17 Title

England scripted a dramatic turnaround in Kolkata to win the 2017 FIFA U17 World Cupfor the very first time after a 5-2 win over
European U17 champions Spain.
Spain appeared to throw in the towel after letting slip a commanding lead, and their woe was compounded by further strikes from Marc Guehi and Foden to round off a comprehensive 5-2 victory.

NATIONAL

· Haryana Government to engage 15000 apprentices in various departments

To strengthen the manpower of various departments of Haryana government,15,000 apprentices will be engaged from December.
A sum of Rs 31.64 crore has been allocated by the Finance Department for this purpose. Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said the Skill Development and Industrial Department would be the nodal department for monitoring engagement of apprentices.
According to the decision taken by the government, all departments are required to immediately engage apprentices to the extent of 10 percent of their total manpower, including contractual or outsourced employees, working at directorates and in field offices.

· Virat Kohli Becomes Fastest Batsman to Score 9000 ODI Runs

Virat Kohlibecame the sixth Indian to complete 9000 ODI runs during the third game against New Zealand. He went on to score his 32nd ODI century off 96 balls.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni had reached the milestone in 2016 while other Indians who have done so are Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly and Mohammad Azharuddin. Overall, Kohli, who played his 202nd match and 194th innings has become the 19th batsman to breach the 9000-run mark, making him the fastest to get there.

· Union Cabinet approves Rs 7,000 crore for construction of six IIT campuses

Union Cabinet approved over Rs 7,000 crore for construction of permanent campuses of six new Indian Institute of Technology (IITs).
Permanent campuses for six new IITs will be constructed at Tirupati (Andhra Pradesh), Palakkad (Kerala), Dharwad (Karnataka), Jammu (Jammu and Kashmir), Bhilai (Chhattisgarh) and Goa.
Academic sessions of IITs at Tirupati and Palakkad started in 2015-16 and at Dharwad, Bhilai, Jammu, and Goa it started in 2016-17.
These institutions are currently functioning from temporary campuses with a total strength of 1530 students.
From the academic year 2020-2021, each of the six permanent campuses will have a facility for housing 1,200 students, thereby raising the total strength of students to 7200.

· Union Government Makes Use of Public Finance Management System Mandatory for Central Schemes

The Centre has made the use ofPublic Finance Management System (PFMS) mandatory for all central schemes.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley stated that making use of the PFMS mandatorily will ensure benefits of government schemes to reach the last mile.
The move would help in tracking and monitoring the flow of funds to the implementing agencies.
A total of 613 schemes of the central government will be covered under PFMS. The ambit of PFMS coverage includes central sector and centrally sponsored schemes as well as other expenditures including the Finance Commission grants.

Gk bit –PFMS

The Public Financial Management System (PFMS),earlier known as Central Plan Schemes Monitoring System (CPSMS), is a web-based online software application developed and implemented by the Office of Controller General of Accounts (CGA). PFMS was initially started during 2009 as a Central Sector Scheme of Planning Commission with the objective of tracking funds released under all Plan schemes of GoI, and real time reporting of expenditure at all levels of Programme implementation. Subsequently in the year 2013, the scope was enlarged to cover direct payment to beneficiaries under both Plan and non-Plan Schemes.

The primary objective of PFMS is to facilitate sound Public Financial Management System for Government of India (GoI) by establishing an efficient fund flow system as well as a payment cum accounting network.

· Patna Pirates won Third Pro Kabaddi Successive Title

Pardeep Narwal scored incredible 24 points to steer Patna Piratesto third consecutive Pro Kabaddi title.
Pardeep scored 76 points in three playoffs, helped Patna come from behind and thump Gujarat Fortune giants 55-38 in the summit clash of Pro Kabaddi season 5.
Gujarat’s Sachin Tawar was the only player who had managed to break through Patna defence and scored 11 points.
The 20-year old raider finishes the 2017 edition as the highest raider with 369 raid points and 19 Super 10s.

Dreamnation: Uniting a Country with Handwritten Dreams: A Book on Kalam

The book ‘Dreamnation: Uniting a Country with Handwritten Dreams’ was released online by Indian women’s cricket team captain Mithali Raj recently.
The book contains inspiring words of Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam.
The book was co-authored by Saji Mathew and Jubie John.

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